Self-Care for the Greater Good

How’s your self-care? Is it built into your daily life?

Self-care gets easily tossed out the window when the demands of our lives escalate. It’s easy to let self care slip away when in the throes of holiday season or undertaking any big project. I know it all too well.

Maybe it’s exercise, eating cleaner, getting more sleep or whatever the area of neglect. At some point you might notice no longer being as focused, creative or coherent. The realization may strike that getting back on track is no longer negotiable.

Exhaustion leads to bad choices and less resilience. When basic needs go ignored the connection with self is impaired, mood levels fluctuate, and relationships suffer. Self-care is not just important, it’s crucial to our well-being on every level.

What I’ve discovered over the years is that taking care of oneself requires an ongoing commitment that ideally takes precedence over most other demands. Then we are poised to show up fully for the people in our lives and be the best that we can be.

The reality is that small frequent actions to care for our needs gives us the respite that we need and the energy needed to carry on with greater vibrancy and clarity.

Taking breaks like lunch with a girlfriend, a meditation session, working out at the gym, taking a brisk walk makes us happier, more productive, focused and creative.

Self-care isn’t part of a reward system, it’s at the core of driving your day with more wisdom and agency.

My recommendation is that you fiercely protect a part of your day to solely doing activities that you enjoy and that give you the juice needed to carry on.

Some self-care thoughts:

Make time to eat well and exercise even when pressed with deadlines. You might have to plan ahead and get creative to make this happen.

Short frequent breaks revitalize mind and body. Walk around the block. Call a girlfriend. Do some balance exercises. Write in your journal. Swim. Meditate. Power nap.

Take your mind off the task at hand and give your brain a chance to consolidate information. It can lead to unexpected bouts of creativity as well as a feeling of renewal when returning to the project at hand.

When intense feelings surface, give yourself a quick break to process and collect yourself. What are you feeling and why?

Do something about your passion or biggest life goal every day—even just a few minutes of moving your dream ahead will feel like you’ve gotten something for yourself on any given day.

What do you do for self-care? How do you weave this time into your daily routine?

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